A Look at Alex Boone

I dug up a tape from this year’s Fiesta Bowl to take a look at the 49ers most intriguing rookie free agent, gargantuan tackle Alex Boone. He played left tackle at Ohio State in the Buckeyes’ last minute 24-21 Fiesta Bowl defeat to Texas and experienced a mixed night.

Boone looked dominate at times, particularly with his run blocking in the first half. Before running back Beanie Wells went out with a concussion, he romped for 102 yards in the first half and many of those runs came behind Boone. Not only can he drive block at 6-8, 320 pounds, but he showed the ability to find a linebacker in space and wall him off, which might have been the most impressive aspect of his game.

Boone will switch to right tackle with the 49ers, an area of ardent need, particularly with Marvel Smith’s balky back and Adam Snyder’s and Barry Sims’s sketchy pass protection, which will also be Boone’s most formidable challenge. Against the Longhorns, he pass blocked fairly well, but at times, he flat out got beat. Eventual first-round choice Brian Orakpo got two steps on Boone before he could even get out of his stance. Orakpo, who went with the no. 13 overall choice to Washington, smashed into quarterback Terrelle Pryor two seconds after the snap to force an incompletion.

However, Boone held up well the rest of the game forcing Orakpo to rush mainly from the right side in the second half. The end of the game is where Boone seemed to struggle. It looked like he wore down. The Ohio State offensive line ran wild on the Longhorns, who came into the game ranked second in the country to run defense. Those numbers might be skewed because so many Big-12 teams pass nearly every down out of the spread formation. Nevertheless, Texas didn’t get to number two without stopping somebody.

Nevertheless, towards the end to the game, the Buckeye line struggled to stop the Longhorn blitzes and that included Boone. On a two-point conversion in the fourth quarter, Boone faced two blitzers, and didn’t to lay a hand on either one of the them as they sped past him, which led to a hurried throw and failed two-point attempt.

Alex Boone will look to make the team when training camp opens.

Boone, however, did continue to collapse the right side of the Texas front with consistent wash down blocks throughout the game. The Buckeye line was so big, Texas had to slant their linemen to get push, and Boone took advantage of slants away from him with obliterating blocks. That’s exactly what the 49ers might want to establish with their line this season – to be so big that defenses must slant to gain penetration. Boone would excel in such a system.

But his ability to make the team will hinge on his pass protection, his stamina, and one other item – staying out of trouble. Boone slipped out of the draft completely after his arrest in his native southern California for disorderly behavior. Inebriated, Boone banged on garage doors, and leapt onto cars one night in Feb. 2, which prompted a call to the cops. The police had to taser him him twice after finding him hiding underneath a porch.

During OTA’s, Boone vowed to be a reformed man. Once projected as a top prospect at tackle following his junior year, If he can stay sober, gain lung capacity and a quicker pair of feet, he could be the surprise of training camp.